Boxerworks.com

Can't understand a word, but damn cool to see B&W footage of all those old motorcycles being ridden to a winter rally-

http://www.ina.fr/economie-et-societe/v ... ts.fr.html

Cool film ! Notice the "Hippo Hands" ?

Hippo Hands rock, long before there where heated grips.

BTW The Classic Motorcyle https://classicissues.com/bidetail.asp?AutoNo=1003190 March isue has an article on the 1967 Elepahant Rally. Should still be on the newstands.

Hippo hands make sense, heated grips don't. What a wonderful film. Wish I had been there. Do they still do it?

Duane Ausherman wrote:Hippo hands make sense, heated grips don't. What a wonderful film. Wish I had been there. Do they still do it?

Why don't heated grips make sense? They keep your hands warm and are always there.

Zombie Master wrote:

Duane Ausherman wrote:Hippo hands make sense, heated grips don't. What a wonderful film. Wish I had been there. Do they still do it?

Why don't heated grips make sense? They keep you hands warm and are always there.

They didn't generate enough electricity to melt the snow off the headlight let alone power heated grips.

ZM asked, "Why don't heated grips make sense? They keep your hands warm and are always there."

The heat is on the inside of your hands and the cold is on the outside. If adding heat could be the answer, then heated gloves with the elements on the outside is the answer. However, anyone that has used Hippo Hands or equivilant knows that they provide protection that is equal to just standing around on a cold day doing very little.

So, if the conditions are such that you can stand in one place in the cold, with no wind, then that is what Hippo Hands provide. I would wear my summer gloves in Hippo Hands down into the teens with total comfort.

Hippo Hands just remove the wind chill factor. Were I to live where it was important to "add heat" then I would tinker with grabbing some heat from the ouside of the engine and channel it up and into the Hippo Hands.

I have ridden bikes with electric grips and they only work partially, as the heat is in the wrong place, but they do help.

This electric "thing" is just going the wrong direction. Just my opinion.

Not only doe Hippo Hands block the wind, they keep your hands dry. No mater how waterproof your gloves are, when water is evaporating on the outside of them you have air conditioned gloves.

BTW the old guy in the film was 80 years old. That was a lot older back in 1970.

Hippos have worked relatively well for me on the coldest of winter days in Michigan –
wearing my usual summer leather gloves and without added heat of any kind.

Heated grips merely keep the palms of my hands warm
while the backs of my hands and the 4 fingers that are always on the levers FREEZE
at highway speeds and temps approaching freezing.

Gloves insulated well enough to keep the cold out, even the electric ones, are just too bulky
and compromise my comfort-ability to work the controls.

This will be my experience.

I no longer ride year round, but still get out when the pavement's clear.
And I can say this, also from experience:
The combination, Hippos, summer leather gloves, & heated grips –
is the absolute CAT'S proverbial ASS combination
for warm hands & dexterity when riding in the cold.

I didn't understand much. Sidecar sounds the same in French. And I did notice that at one point, they showed a Yamaha and I heard the word Japanese and then they showed a Harley Davidson and he said "shamu". I really think it was a French word but no kidding, he said "shamu".

Man, that looks so cold to a California boy!

Chuey